Question About Link Between Fatigue and Change in Personality and Mood?

kennythebomb

kennythebomb

4,394
I posted this on yahoo answers also

What are the physiological reasons why my personality changes when I am tired (like right now). I notice when I am reaaally tired, I tend to be less optimistic about things. I walk slower. I complain more. It's like the barrier for me to get agitated about a given situation is nearly removed. Fatigue sort of seems like a mild temporary form of depression to me, because I am less motivated to do things (and for no psychological reason). How does it accomplish that?

If you have a yahoo account then feel free to answer on yahoo answers. If you happen to give me the best answer, then you get 10 points and a best answer.

I'm sure the GTP answers will be better than 'I have PMS' :lol:
 
I don't really know but if I had to guess I'd say it has something to do with circadian rhythms. Your body has a natural biological clock that has evolved to adapt to the different energy requirements and usage during the hours of sunlight and darkness... I reckon that once the body starts to get tired, our brains start to respond to the demands that our body is making - basically telling your brain to put your body to bed... but we can use our minds to fight against what our bodies are telling us to do. As our energy levels drop, and biochemical processes get underway that are there solely to help shut the body down for sleep, it's not surprising that we start to find things harder to do, be it physical activity or mental activity (concentration)... and typically, when we find things harder to do, we start to get frustrated - even if all we are trying to do is stay awake... I haven't met a person yet who gets less cranky when they are tired.
 
kylehnat
Well, at a certain point (massive sleep deprivation), one will become delerious and euphoric :dopey:
Click to expand...

Unless you try to wake them up when they're going to sleep. Personally, I turn into a zombie when I sleep. When people deprive me of this, I turn into a super pissed off zombie. And zombies don't have memories, because I don't remember anything of it.
 
I usually get super whimsical when I'm really tired. I come up with so many jokes and weird ideas and I laugh at everything until my side hurts. I do some pretty funny stuff.
 
I laugh a hell of alot when I'm tired but that is usually followed by a large yawn and scratch of the behind..

Only when I'm tired though. :sly:

As for your question, I think that when your tired, you knwo your tired and you just want to get comfy, relax, chill out, etc. When someone tell you to go do something, you loose the state of relaxation thus resulting in being annoyed and unmotivated.

That's the lazy man's way of saying what TM said I think.
 
Last week, I woke up at 5:30am Tuesday morning and came into work at 7am. I worked until 5:30pm, went home, mowed the lawn for 3 hours, gave the kids a bath, put them to bed and was back at work by 9:30pm. I went home at 4:30am, slept for 1.5 hours and came back to work at 8am. My boss found out and sent me home after I finished what needed to get done at 4pm. I went home, we went out to eat (for the first time in 7 years of marriage I didn't drive with my wife in the car :eek:), and shopping. I put the kids to bed and finally went to bed at 9:30pm.

Summary: After having 1.5 hours of sleep in 40 hours, I was still doing surprisingly well, considering.

My thoughts on why: I knew I was dog tired, so I was very mindful of it and paid a lot more attention to things. Working for 23.5 of the 40 hours, I was still anal enough to not let things slide and was catching things that the Engineers (who were also working) were missing. My wife, who works nights in the ER, was surprised at how well I was doing after all that. Sleep depravation affects everyone differently, and apparently I am one of the "lucky" (and I use that term loosely) ones who can still function moderately well on little sleep.

Either that or I have male PMS. :grumpy:
 
Hmm, interesting to see how different people react to being tired.

If I'm in a good, silly mood before I get tired... than I turn into keef.

If I am neutral but have things to get done, I can be like TB.

Today though I guess something was irritating me.. namely my ankle that I sprained.
 
I also notice that my food choices are not so good when I am tired. Eating something just because it's there is never good, but when I am tired it's like I don't care. The radio at work gets louder (and no, not just in my head) the longer we work. The choice of music gets progressively "harder", if you will, also.

*Opens mouth, inserts food, repeats.*
 
If I am tired, two things will almost always make me more sleepy, or put me to sleep altogether: A comfortable(ish) spot, and some heat. No matter the situation, be it doing math homework (as of a couple years ago), or even at the wheel. I've caught myself a couple times before starting to nod off at the wheel, and pulled over immediately as a result.

I've also found that if I'm up late at night or for long periods of time, I can forget what I've done. For example, if I've had a long, early day and I'm up late at the computer, I can awake the next day and not remember the last couple hours before I've gone to bed.
As for my temper/mood when I'm sleepy, two things generally happen: I become careless of what I'm doing and sloppy or distracted, or I will become pissed off (Usually set off by if I've had a bad day, or a select few people talk to me).

On that note, I'm going to bed. I already managed to fall asleep on the floor just a short time ago, so I must be close to dead.
 
Slicks
If I am tired, two things will almost always make me more sleepy, or put me to sleep altogether: A comfortable(ish) spot, and some heat. No matter the situation, be it doing math homework (as of a couple years ago), or even at the wheel. I've caught myself a couple times before starting to nod off at the wheel, and pulled over immediately as a result.

I've also found that if I'm up late at night or for long periods of time, I can forget what I've done. For example, if I've had a long, early day and I'm up late at the computer, I can awake the next day and not remember the last couple hours before I've gone to bed.
As for my temper/mood when I'm sleepy, two things generally happen: I become careless of what I'm doing and sloppy or distracted, or I will become pissed off (Usually set off by if I've had a bad day, or a select few people talk to me).
Click to expand...

Oh man. Driving late at night is probably my most dangerous time... due to my fascination with colors and lights and shiny bright things that go by real quick, which I try to fixate on. This sensation heightens when I am in a car late at night... the white lane markers follow gentle curves... I can't help but stare as they pass under the car. This is what will probably kill me one day. I have to forcibly stop myself each time.
 
kennythebomb
the white lane markers follow gentle curves... I can't help but stare as they pass under the car. This is what will probably kill me one day. I have to forcibly stop myself each time.
Click to expand...
*makes a mental note to not go to Chicago anytime soon*

:)
 
TB
*makes a mental note to not go to Chicago anytime soon*

:)
Click to expand...

You're more at risk living in Flint or Dearborn, MI by % of time that I stay there.

However I do all of my late late night driving in Chicago.

Which, coincidentally, I am coming home this weekend.
 
I seem to become more intollerant as I get more and more tired. I usually don't get as much sleep as I should but I seem to function ok for the most part. It's after a two day period like my last two that I become overly agitated. I only worked 5 hours on Friday but it was with people that had no clue what they were doing so I had to pick up ALL of the slack and there was A LOT of it, then I was up till 12:30ish with a 6:30 wake up, followed by a good hour and a half car trip where I sat in the sun for about 9 hours, same drive home and now I'm still up at 10:30.

While this is not a particularly big period of sleep deprivation, I noticed today that my friend would crack a joke I would probably (although I may use that term loosely) have laughed at, yet all I could think of in my head was "Pipe down, melon head". I become increasingly lazy and as Keef does, I laugh at even less entertaining things than usual. I can laugh for about ten minutes, but I'm knackered at the end of it which just adds to my tiredness.

Wow, I really need to work on my paragraph structure.
 

Latest Posts

Back